UO student accuses Duck football pair of frat theft

A University of Oregon student has accused two of the school’s football players of stealing several items from a campus fraternity early Sunday morning, UO Athletic Department spokesman Dave Williford confirmed Sunday.

Williford said a university communications office representative contacted Eugene Police Department officials on Sunday about the accusation, but hadn’t heard back, which is why Williford said he considers the claim to be “unsubstantiated.”

“At this point, we’re just waiting to see if anything comes of it,” Williford said.

Asked whether the athletic department has contacted the players specifically accused by the student, Williford said head football Coach Chip Kelly “has looked into it.”

Police responded to a theft report at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity house at 812 E. 14th Ave. just before 1 a.m. Sunday, according to spokeswoman Melinda Kletzok. Among the items reported stolen were a laptop, musical instruments and a projector, she said.

The student who made the accusation is a member of the fraternity.

Officers have identified “persons of interest” in the case, Kletzok said, and made an unsuccessful attempt to contact those people on Sunday. Kletzok declined to identify the persons of interest, saying that the case is still under investigation.

One of the victims of the theft was able to retrieve his projector at the scene of the crime, Kletzok said.

Fraternity officer Nick Poggi said police took fingerprints at the scene later Sunday morning.

Blogs and the social networking site Twitter were abuzz about the theft throughout the day Sunday, identifying two players as suspects in the case.

The Register-Guard is not naming those players because they have not been identified by police as suspects or persons of interest, and no arrests have been made.